Google Workspace MX records send your domain's mail to Google. A new setup needs one: type MX, name blank or @, priority 1, value smtp.google.com. Google's set up page, updated 1 October 2026, lists it as the current value.
Allow up to 72 hours, or 48 on another Google page. A working older aspmx setup needs no change.
Type: MX
Name: @ (or leave blank)
TTL: your DNS host's default, or 1
Priority: 1
Value: smtp.google.comAn MX record is a DNS entry that tells other mail servers where to deliver mail for your domain. DNS is the public address book for domain names.
Your DNS host is the company where you edit those entries. It is often the company where you bought the domain.
Know what you need first
You need three things:
A domain you own, with access to edit its DNS records at your DNS host.
A Google Workspace account with the domain verified, which Google requires before you set up Gmail.
Access to the Google Admin console, where you manage your domain and users.
Find your situation in the table, then follow the stages it points to.
Your situation | What changes | Where to read |
|---|---|---|
A new domain with no mail yet | Add the one record | Stages 2 and 4 |
Moving mail from another host | Create users first, then switch and remove old records | Stages 1 to 4 |
A subdomain like mail.example.com | Put the subdomain in the Name field | Stage 2 |
Many domains for cold outreach | Repeat the stages on each domain's own DNS panel | Stage 2 |
This record receives mail and does not send it
smtp.google.com is where other mail servers deliver mail addressed to you. You do not send from it.
Google's page on sending from a printer, scanner or app lists three sending options.
Sending option | Host | Ports and limits |
|---|---|---|
Gmail SMTP server |
| 465 or 587, with an app password |
SMTP relay |
| 25, 465 or 587 |
Restricted Gmail SMTP |
| 25, to Gmail and Google Workspace users only |
A port is a numbered channel on a server. An app password is a separate password for one app. Sending also needs SPF, DKIM and DMARC records, which prove a message came from your domain.
Missing ones cause bounces like those in the five causes of a 550 5.7.1 bounce.
Choose the right MX records for Google Workspace
Choose by the age of your account and by whether mail works today.
Option | Records | Use it when |
|---|---|---|
Current single record |
| You are setting up Google Workspace now |
Older five records |
| Your account started before 2023 and mail works |
Skip Google MX setup | No MX change | Another mail server handles mail for an extra domain |
Priority is a number, and senders deliver to the lowest number first, a rule set in RFC 5321.
The older list has five hosts, and Labnol published them on 27 April 2023.
Is one record enough?
Yes. Google says any account can use the single record, and that the older values, which it calls legacy values, are still supported.
Some setup advice says one record is risky and that you must add all five. Google's page does not say that. Its values sit in one small table.
Match each field in your DNS panel to a row in that table.
Stage 1: Create your users and pick a quiet time
Skip this stage if the domain has no mail today.
Steps:
In the Admin console, create an account for every person who will get mail.
Set up a catch all address, which collects mail sent to names that do not exist yet.
Pick a time when little mail arrives, like an evening or a weekend.
Tell people the date and time, and ask them to resend any message that bounces.
Confirm: Every person on your list has an account in the Admin console.
What happens to mail during the switch
Google's page on avoiding issues when you change MX records says mail goes to your previous provider until the new records are active.
The same page says no messages will be lost, but some might need to be resent.
Stage 2: Add the MX record at your DNS host
Steps:
Sign in to your DNS host and open the page where you edit DNS records.
Add a new record and set Type to MX.
Leave Name blank, or enter @ if the field will not stay empty.
Set TTL to your DNS host's default, or to 1. TTL is how long other computers may remember the answer.
Set Priority to 1.
Enter
smtp.google.comas the value, then save.
Confirm: Your DNS panel lists one MX record with priority 1 and the value smtp.google.com.
Subdomains and many outreach domains
Google says to enter the subdomain value in the Name field when you add a subdomain. For a subdomain called mail, you enter mail.
A record covers only its own domain, so a cold outreach setup repeats stages 2 to 4 on each domain.
Trailing dot and preset options
Some DNS hosts need a period at the end of the value, like smtp.google.com.. Squarespace and Wix offer a preset option, so you type nothing.
Stage 3: Remove old MX records
Google says to remove any other MX records. Email might not work correctly if you keep old or incorrect ones. Keep Google's records only.
Steps:
List every MX record on the domain.
Delete each one that points to your old provider.
Confirm: The MX list shows Google's record or records and nothing else.
Stage 4: Activate Gmail in the Admin console
Steps:
In the Admin console, open the menu, then Account, then Domains, then Manage domains.
Find your domain and click Activate Gmail.
Follow the steps on screen.
Confirm: The steps finish without an error. If a message says MX records are missing, go to the fix section below.
Use the Activate Gmail option once your domain is verified.
Copy the record
Use this form if your DNS host takes records as text.
@ IN MX 1 smtp.google.com.Before you save, confirm each item:
Type is MX, not TXT or CNAME.
Name is blank or @, or your subdomain name.
Priority is 1 and the value is
smtp.google.com, with a trailing dot only if your DNS host asks for one.No MX record points to an old provider.
Wait up to 72 hours, then check the record
Google gives two limits for the same wait. People call this wait propagation time. It is how long other computers take to see your new record. The table sets the two limits next to the limit your old record creates.
Source | What it covers | Longest wait |
|---|---|---|
Google's set up page | New MX records being recognized | Up to 72 hours |
Google's page on avoiding MX issues | Google MX records taking effect | Up to 48 hours |
The TTL on your old record | Computers still holding the old answer | Up to that TTL |
Example: an old TTL of 86,400 seconds | Same | 24 hours |
Why Google gives two limits
Google does not say why the two pages differ. I'd plan for the longer limit and change nothing while you wait.
A person in a Sitejet community thread from October 2025 said mail began working after more than three days. The thread has four replies and is marked solved. It is one report. It shows that a retest on day two can still fail.
A TTL example
TTL stands for time to live. RFC 2181 says "The TTL specifies a maximum time to live, not a mandatory time to live."
This is an example, not a measurement. Say your old MX record has a TTL of 86,400 seconds. One hour has 3,600 seconds, and 86,400 divided by 3,600 is 24.
A computer that saved the old answer right before your change can keep using it for up to 24 hours.
Google's page on avoiding MX issues gives no TTL advice, so this step is optional. If you control the old record, lower its TTL at least 24 hours before the switch in this example.
Find your published MX records with Admin Toolbox Dig
Dig looks up a DNS record and shows the answer. Google's setup page points to it for confirming the published records.
Open Admin Toolbox Dig.
Enter your domain in the Name field, without www.
Look for
smtp.google.comwith priority 1 in the answer.
Confirm: The answer lists Google's record. If it still lists your old provider, the wait is not over. If the answer is empty, the record may not be saved at the DNS host your domain uses.
A matching answer means the record is live.
Fix a missing MX error
Match what you see to a row, then read the section below it.
What you see | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
Admin console says MX records are missing | The record is not saved at the right DNS host, or the wait is not over | Run Dig, correct the record, wait up to 72 hours |
Mail still reaches your old provider | Old MX records are still published | Delete them, then wait |
A sender gets a bounce | The domain has no MX record | Add the record |
Subdomain mail fails | The record exists only on the main domain | Add an MX record named for the subdomain |
Google says MX records are missing
A person in a Square community thread from December 2021 saw "MX records are missing" after clicking Activate Gmail. They had deleted the old DNS records and added Google's, and their domain was managed through a site builder.
The thread has more than 6,700 views and five replies, and it is not marked solved.
A record only counts at the DNS host your domain actually uses. Run Dig first. If the record is missing, add it at that host. If it is there, wait out the 72 hours.
A sender gets a bounce
A sending server uses the domain's address record when no MX record exists, as RFC 7505 describes.
Mail can then land at your web host, which may not accept it. RFC 3463 defines status 5.1.2 as "Bad destination system address".
Read what a 550 5.1.2 hard bounce means if you got that bounce.
The SMTP error codes reference covers the other codes you may meet.
Another mail server handles your mail
Google's setting to skip Google MX setup activates an extra domain, or a domain alias, without changing MX records. A domain alias is a second name for your main domain.
Google calls the setting rarely used. It fits when your own mail server handles the mail. It also fits when a service archives mail or filters spam.
What already sets up the sending records
MX records set where your incoming mail goes. They do not prove that the mail you send comes from you. SPF, DKIM, and DMARC records do that.
TrueEmailer configures all three together at setup for every domain it sends from. It does not add or change MX records, and it does not change where your Google Workspace mail arrives. Stages 1 to 4 above still apply for that.
FAQ
Is smtp.google.com the same as smtp.gmail.com?
No. smtp.google.com receives your mail, and smtp.gmail.com is a server you send from.
Will mail sent during the switch be lost?
Google says no messages will be lost, but some might need to be resent.
Do I need to delete my old MX records?
Yes, the ones that point to another provider. Google says to remove any other MX records, because old or incorrect ones can stop email from working correctly.
Can I use the record on a subdomain?
Yes. Enter the subdomain value in the Name field, and add one record for each subdomain that needs mail.
Do I need MX records if I only send from Google Workspace?
Yes, if you want replies and bounce notices. They reach your domain the same way as any other mail, through its MX records.
Pick your next step
For a new domain, add the one record and change nothing for 72 hours. If Activate Gmail still reports missing records, run Dig. An empty answer points to the wrong DNS host.
An old provider in the answer points to records you still need to delete.
Steps verified 5 October 2026 against Google's official Admin Help pages for Google Workspace.